Heat exchanger

ABSTRACT

A heat exchanger includes a bag-like outer packaging material. A heat medium flows into an inside of the outer packaging material. An inner core material is arranged in the inside of the outer packaging material. The outer packaging material has an outer packaging laminate material including a metal heat transfer layer and a resin thermal fusion layer on a surface side of the heat transfer layer. The outer packaging laminate materials form a bag shape by integrally joining the thermal fusion layers along the peripheral edge portions. The inner core material includes the inner core laminate material with a metal heat transfer layer and resin thermal fusion layers on surface sides of the heat transfer layer. The thermal fusion layers of a concave portion bottom and a convex portion top of the inner core material and the thermal fusion layers of the outer packaging laminate material are integrally joined.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a heat exchanger produced using alaminate material such as a laminated sheet in which a resin layer islaminated on a metal layer.

BACKGROUND ART

With miniaturization and high performance of electronic equipment suchas smartphones and personal computers, it has become important to takemeasures against heat generation around a CPU of the electronicequipment. Under the circumstances, in some models, a technique ofavoiding adverse effects of heat has been conventionally proposed, inwhich water cooling type cooling devices and/or heat pipes areincorporated to reduce the heat load for electronic components such asCPU etc. and avoid trapping of heat in the case.

A battery module mounted on electric vehicles or hybrid vehiclesgenerates a large amount of heat from the battery pack because itrepeatedly performs charging and discharging. For this reason, even in abattery module, in the same manner as the above-mentioned electronicequipment, a technique of avoiding adverse effects of heat has beenproposed, in which water cooling type cooling devices and/or heat pipesare incorporated to avoid adverse effects of heat.

Furthermore, even in a power module made of silicon carbide (SiC), etc.,as a measure against heat generation, a measure, such as mounting acooling plate or a heat sink, has been proposed.

By the way, a case for electronic equipment, such as the above-mentionedsmartphones and personal computers, is thin, and many electroniccomponents and cooling devices are incorporated in a limited space inthe thin case. For this reason, as the cooling device itself, a thincooling device is used.

Conventionally, in general, a thin type cooling device, such as a heatpipe, to be incorporated in a small-sized electronic equipment, has beenproduced by joining a plurality of metal machined parts obtained byprocessing metal such as aluminum having high heat transfer propertywith brazing, diffusion bonding, etc. (see, e.g., Patent Documents 1 to3).

PRIOR ART Patent Document

-   Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application    Publication No. 2015-59693-   Patent Document 2: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application    Publication No. 2015-141002-   Patent Document 3: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application    Publication No. 2016-189415

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

In the above-described conventional small-sized electronic equipmentcooling device, each constituent part is produced by plastic workingsuch as casting or forging, or metal working (mechanical working) suchas removal processing including, e.g., cutting. Since such metal workingis troublesome and severe in restrictions, there is a limit to achievethinning, and there is a problem that it is difficult to achievethinning further more.

A conventional small-sized electronic equipment cooling device isrequired to be produced using metal working (metal-to-metal joining)with high difficulty, such as, e.g., brazing or diffusion bonding, whenjoining components. Thus, there are problems that the production isdifficult, lowering the production efficiency, which in turn increasesthe cost.

Furthermore, a conventional cooling device is produced using restrictivemetal working, so the shape and size cannot be easily changed.Therefore, there is also a problem that the degree of freedom in designis poor and it lacks versatility.

The disclosed embodiments of this disclosure have been developed in viewof the above-mentioned and/or other problems in the related art. Thedisclosed embodiments of this disclosure can significantly improve uponexisting methods and/or apparatuses.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentionedproblems. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a heatexchanger capable of achieving sufficient thinning, high design freedom,excellent versatility, efficient and easy production, and costreduction.

The other purposes and advantages of some embodiments of the presentinvention will be made apparent from the following preferredembodiments.

Means for Solving the Problems

In order to solve the aforementioned problems, the present inventionprovides the following means.

[1] A heat exchanger comprising:

a bag-like outer packaging material provided with a heat medium inletand a heat medium outlet, wherein a heat medium flows into an innerspace of the outer packaging material via the heat medium inlet, flowsthrough the inner space, and flows out of the outer packaging materialvia the heat medium outlet; and

an inner core material arranged in the inner space of the outerpackaging material,

wherein the outer packaging material is constituted by an outerpackaging laminate material including a metal heat transfer layer and aresin thermal fusion layer provided on one surface side of the heattransfer layer, and the outer packaging laminate materials are stackedone on the other and the thermal fusion layers of the outer packaginglaminate materials are integrally joined to each other along aperipheral edge portion of the outer packaging laminate material,

wherein the inner core material is constituted by an inner core laminatematerial including a metal heat transfer layer and resin thermal fusionlayers provided on both surface sides of the heat transfer layer, andincludes concave and convex portions, and

wherein the thermal fusion layers of a concave portion bottom and aconvex portion top of the inner core material and the thermal fusionlayers of the outer packaging materials are integrally joined.

[2] The heat exchanger as recited in the aforementioned Item [1],

wherein the thermal fusion layer of the outer packaging material and thethermal fusion layer of the inner core material are made of the samekind of resin.

[3] The heat exchanger as recited in the aforementioned Item [1] or [2],

wherein a depth of the concave portion or a height of the convex portionis set to 0.1 mm to 50 mm.

[4] The heat exchanger as recited in any one of the aforementioned Items[1] to [3],

further comprising joint pipes,

wherein one of the joint pipes is provided at the heat medium inlet andthe other of the joint pipes is provided at the heat medium outlet, andthe joint pipes are configured to allow the heat medium to flow into andflow out of the outer packaging material via the joint pipes.

[5] The heat exchanger as recited in the aforementioned Item [4],

wherein each of the join pipes is provided with a resin thermal fusionlayer on an outer peripheral surface of each of the joint pipes,

wherein the outer packaging laminate materials are stacked one on theother via the joint pipes, the thermal fusion layers of the outerpackaging laminate materials are integrally joined to the thermal fusionlayers of the joint pipes, and the joint pipes are attached to the outerpackaging material in a sealed state, and

wherein the thermal fusion layer of the outer packaging laminatematerial and the thermal fusion layer of each of the joint pipes aremade of the same kind of resin.

[6] A method of producing the heat exchanger as recited in any one ofthe aforementioned Items [1] to [5],

wherein the concave and convex portions of the inner core material areformed by an embossing process or a corrugating process.

[7] The method of producing the heat exchanger as recited in theaforementioned Item [6],

wherein the concave and convex portions are formed on the inner corematerial by passing the inner core laminate material between a pair ofembossing rolls or a pair of corrugating rolls while sandwiching theinner core laminate material between the pair of embossing rolls or thepair of corrugating rolls.

[8] The method of producing the heat exchanger as recited in any one ofthe aforementioned Items [1] to [5],

wherein the concave and convex portions of the inner core material areformed by a pleating process.

Effects of the Invention

According to the heat exchanger of the present invention as recited inthe aforementioned Item [1], the heat exchanger is produced by thermallyfusing the laminate materials each having the thermal fusion layer.Therefore, there is no need to use troublesome metal working, enablingefficient and easy production, which in turn can achieve the costreduction. Furthermore, since the production can be completed by bondingthe laminate materials, it is possible to achieve corrosion resistanceand sufficient thinning. Furthermore, in the heat exchanger of thepresent invention, the laminate material as the outer packaging materialand the inner core material can be easily changed in shape and size, sothe degree of freedom in design can be increased and versatility can beimproved.

According to the heat exchanger of the invention as recited in theaforementioned Item [2], the outer packaging material and the inner corematerial can be integrally joined together more assuredly, which canimprove the pressure resistance.

According to the heat exchanger of the invention as recited in theaforementioned Item [3], the flow passage for the heat medium can beassuredly formed inside the outer packaging material.

According to the heat exchanger of the invention as recited in theaforementioned Item [4], since the heat medium can be flowed into andout of the inner space of the outer packaging material via the jointpipes, it is possible to suppress the heat medium from leaking throughthe junction of the flow passage.

According to the heat exchanger of the invention as recited in theaforementioned Item [5], the joint pipes can be attached to the outerpackaging material in a state in which the joint pipes are sealed moreassuredly.

According to the method of producing the heat exchanger of the inventionas recited in the aforementioned Items [6] to [8], the heat exchanger ofthe inventions as recited in the aforementioned Items [1] to [5] can beproduced efficiently and assuredly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Some preferred embodiments of the present invention are shown by way ofexample, and not limitation, in the accompanying figures.

FIG. 1A to FIG. 1C are views showing a heat exchanger which is anembodiment of the present invention, wherein FIG. 1A is a plan view,FIG. 1B is a side cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B in FIG.1A, and FIG. 1C is a front cross-sectional view taken along the line C-Cin FIG. 1A.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the portionsurrounded by the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 1C.

FIG. 3A is a perspective view showing an example of the inner corematerial in the heat exchanger of the embodiment.

FIG. 3B is a perspective view showing another example of the inner corematerial in the heat exchanger of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a side view for explaining the processing method of the innercore material of the embodiment.

FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B are views for explaining the production procedure ofthe heat exchanger of the embodiment, wherein FIG. 5A is a frontcross-sectional view thereof, and FIG. 5B is a top view thereof.

FIG. 5C and FIG. 5D are views for explaining the production procedure ofthe heat exchanger of the embodiment, wherein FIG. 5C is a frontcross-sectional view thereof, and FIG. 5D is a top view thereof.

FIG. 5E and FIG. 5F are views for explaining the production procedure ofthe heat exchanger of the embodiment, wherein FIG. 5E is a frontcross-sectional view thereof, and FIG. 5F is a top view thereof.

FIG. 5G and FIG. 5H are views for explaining the production procedure ofthe heat exchanger of the embodiment, wherein FIG. 5G is a frontcross-sectional view thereof, and FIG. 5H is a top view thereof.

EMBODIMENTS FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

In the following paragraphs, some preferred embodiments of the inventionwill be described by way of example and not limitation. It should beunderstood based on this disclosure that various other modifications canbe made by those in the art based on these illustrated embodiments.

FIG. 1A to FIG. 1C are views showing a heat exchanger according to anembodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an enlargedcross-sectional view showing the portion surrounded by the alternatelong and short dash line in FIG. 1C.

In the heat exchanger of this embodiment, in order to facilitateunderstanding of the invention, the following description will be madein which the up and down direction in FIG. 1A is referred to as the“front and rear direction” and the left and right direction is referredto as the “left and right direction”, and the up and down direction inFIG. 1C is referred to as the “up and down direction (thicknessdirection)”.

Note that since the heat exchanger of this embodiment is formed in asymmetrical shape in any of the front and rear direction, the left andright direction, and the up and down direction, the same configurationis obtained regardless of which of the front and rear direction, theleft and right direction, and the up and down direction is replaced.

As shown in FIG. 1A to FIG. 2, the heat exchanger of this embodiment isprovided with a bag-like outer packaging material 1 and an inner corematerial 2 arranged in an inner space of the outer packaging material 1,and a refrigerant inlet (heat medium inlet) 3 and a refrigerant outlet(heat medium outlet) 4 are provided at the front end portion and therear end portion of the outer packaging material 1, respectively.

The outer packaging material 1 is composed of an outer packaginglaminate material 11 as a laminate material such as a laminated sheet.As shown in FIG. 2, the outer packaging laminate material 11 is providedwith a metal heat transfer layer 12, a resin thermal fusion layer 13laminated on one surface (inner surface) of the heat transfer layer 12,a resin coating layer 14 laminated on the other surface (outer surface)of the heat transfer layer 12. The outer packaging material 1 of thisembodiment is formed in a bag shape by stacking two outer packaginglaminate materials 11 formed in a rectangular shape which will bedescribed later one on top of the other and integrally joining thethermal fusion layers 13 of the outer peripheral edge portions of theouter packaging laminate materials 11 by thermal fusing (heat sealing).

Joint pipes 31 and 41 are attached to the refrigerant inlet 3 and therefrigerant outlet 4 of the outer packaging material 1. In thisembodiment, the joint pipes 31 and 41 are configured by, for example, anintegrally molded article of synthetic resin, and at least the surfaceresin thereof is served as a thermal fusion layer.

The joint pipes 31 and 41 are arranged between the front end portionsand between the rear end portions of the two outer packaging laminatematerials 11 constituting the outer packaging material 1 so as to besandwiched therebetween, and the outer peripheral surface (thermalfusion layer) of each of the joint pipes 31 and 41 is integrally joinedto the thermal fusion layer 13 of the corresponding outer packaginglaminate material 11 by thermal fusion. With this, the joint pipes 31and 41 are fixed to the outer packaging material 1 at the positions ofthe refrigerant inlet 3 and the refrigerant outlet 4 of the outerpackaging material 1 in a state in which the joint pipes 31 and 41penetrate the front end portion and the rear end portion of the outerpackaging material 1. In this state, the entire outer peripheral surfaceof the joint pipe 31, 41 and the thermal fusion layers 13 of the outerpackaging laminate materials 11 are sealed by thermal fusion.

Furthermore, one end side of each joint pipe 31, 41 is arranged outsidethe outer packaging material 1, and the other end side thereof isarranged inside the outer packaging material 1. Thus, the refrigerantcan be introduced to the inside of the outer packaging material 1 viathe joint pipe 31 on the refrigerant inlet 3 side, and the refrigerantinside the outer packaging material 1 can be derived outside via thejoint pipe 41 on the refrigerant outlet 4 side.

Here, in this embodiment, the heat transfer layer 12 in the outerpackaging laminate material 11 is made of a metal film (metal foil).Specifically, as a metal film of the heat transfer layer 12, an aluminumfoil, a stainless steel foil, a nickel foil or a plated copper foil, anda clad metal of a nickel foil and a copper foil can be used suitably. Inparticular, it is more preferable to use an aluminum foil inconsideration of thermal conductivity, cost, and the like.

Further, as the heat transfer layer 12, a heat transfer layer having athickness of 8 μm to 300 μm, more preferably 8 μm to 100 μm, can besuitably used.

In addition, by applying a surface treatment such as a chemicalconversion treatment, the heat transfer layer 12 can be further improvedin durability, such as the corrosion prevention of the heat transferlayer 12 and the improvement of adhesive property of the heat transferlayer 12 with resin.

The chemical conversion treatment is performed by, for example, thefollowing processing. That is, a chemical conversion treatment isperformed by coating one of the following aqueous solutions 1) to 3) onthe surface of the metal foil subjected to a degreasing treatment,followed by drying.

1) an aqueous solution of a mixture containing a phosphoric acid, achromic acid, and at least one compound selected from the groupconsisting of a metal salt of a fluoride and a non-metal salt of afluoride

2) an aqueous solution of a mixture containing a phosphoric acid, atleast one resin selected from the group consisting of an acryl basedresin, a chitosan derivative resin, and a phenol based resin, and atleast one compound selected from the group consisting of a chromic acidand a chromium (III) salt

3) an aqueous solution of a mixture containing a phosphoric acid, atleast one resin selected from the group consisting of an acryl basedresin, a chitosan derivative resin, and a phenol based resin; at leastone compound selected from the group consisting of a chromic acid and achromium (III) salt; and at least one compound selected from the groupconsisting of a metal salt of a fluoride and a non-metal salt of afluoride

In the above-described chemical conversion coating film, the chromiumadhesion amount (per one surface) is preferably set to 0.1 mg/m² to 50mg/m², more preferably 2 mg/m² to 20 mg/m².

This surface treatment is the same as in the heat transfer layer 22 ofthe inner core laminate material 21 which will be described later.

As the thermal fusion layer 13, a resin film can be used suitably. As aresin film of the thermal fusion layer 13, specifically, a resin filmhaving a heat fusibility, such as, e.g., a polyolefin based resin, suchas, e.g., polyethylene and polypropylene (for example, non-stretchedpolypropylene) or a modified resin thereof, a polyester based resin,such as, e.g., a fluorine based resin and a PET resin, and a vinylchloride resin is preferably used.

As the thermal fusion layer 13, a thermal fusion layer having athickness of 20 μm to 5,000 μm, more preferably 20 μm to 1,000 μm, canbe suitably used.

Note that the coating layer 14 is not always required. However, bylaminating the coating layer 14, it is possible to give effects as aprotective layer, such as, e.g., corrosion-resistant prevention,prevention of leakage (damage) due to external pressure and internalpressure, to the metal heat transfer layer 12 of the heat exchanger. Inaddition, by using an insulating resin for the coating layer 14, it ispossible to give an insulation effect, such as, e.g., short circuitprevention and leakage prevention, to a device as a heat exchangetarget. On the other hand, by using a conductive resin for the coatinglayer 14, it is possible to give an antistatic effect to the device as aheat exchange target. As the coating layer 14, a resin film similar tothe thermal fusion layer 13 can be suitably used.

In this embodiment, the coating layer 14 may be the same as or differentfrom the thermal fusion layer 13 described above. Note that, consideringthat the outer packaging material 1 and the inner core material 2 arethermally bonded, it is preferable to use the coating layer 14 having amelting point higher than that of the thermal fusion layer 13. Inparticular, it is more preferable to use a resin having a melting pointhigher than that of the thermal fusion layer 13 by 10° C. or more.

Further note that the thickness of the coating layer 14 is notparticularly limited, but is preferably set to the same or smallerthickness as the thermal fusion layer 13 described above.

In this embodiment, the outer packaging laminate material 11 is producedby bonding a resin film for the thermal fusion layer 13 to one surface(inner surface) of a metal film for the heat transfer layer 12 by anadhesive agent and bonding a resin film for the coating layer 14 on theother surface (outer surface) of the metal film for the heat transferlayer 12 by an adhesive agent. The outer packaging laminate material 11can be produced using a known laminating method.

Further note that, in the outer packaging laminate material 11 of thisembodiment, the adhesive agent for bonding the layers 12, 13 and 14 isnot particularly limited, but, for example, a urethane based adhesiveagent can be suitably used.

In this embodiment, each joint pipe 31, 41 is formed of an integrallymolded article of hard synthetic resin. Considering the heat fusibilitywith the outer packaging laminate material 11, the joint pipe 31, 41 ispreferably produced by using a resin of the same kind as the thermalfusion layer 13 of the outer packaging laminate material 11.

On the other hand, the inner core material 2 is composed of an innercore laminate material 21 as a laminate material, such as a laminatedsheet, in the same manner as the outer packaging material 1. This innercore laminate material 21 is composed of a metal heat transfer layer 22and resin thermal fusion layers 23 laminated on both surfaces of theheat transfer layer 22.

In this embodiment, the heat transfer layer 22 of the inner corelaminate material 21 may preferably be the same as the heat transferlayer 12 of the outer packaging laminate material 11 described above. Inthis embodiment, the heat transfer layer 22 of the inner core laminatematerial 21 may be the same as or different from the heat transfer layer12 of the outer packaging laminate material 11.

The thermal fusion layer 23 of the inner core laminate material 21 maybe preferably the same as the thermal fusion layer 13 of the outerpackaging laminate material 11. In this embodiment, considering the heatfusibility, the thermal fusion layer 23 of the inner core laminatematerial 21 and the thermal fusion layer 13 of the outer packaginglaminate material 11 are preferably the same kind of material.

In this embodiment, the inner core laminate material 21 is produced bybonding a resin film for the thermal fusion layer 23 on both surfaces ofa metal film for the heat transfer layer 22 with an adhesive agent. Theinner core laminate material 21 may be produced using a known laminatingmethod.

Further note that, in the inner core laminate material 21 of thisembodiment, the adhesive agent for bonding the layers 22, 23 and 23 isnot particularly limited, but, for example, a urethane based adhesiveagent can be suitably used.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3A, the inner core laminatematerial 21 is subjected to a corrugating process to be formed in acorrugated plate shape, and is configured as the inner core material 2.The portion of the corrugated inner core material 2 which is protruded(depressed) toward one surface side (lower side) is configured as aconcave portion 25 and a portion of the corrugated inner material whichis protruded toward the other surface (upper side) is configured as aconvex portion 26.

In this embodiment, the corrugating process is performed using a pair ofcorrugating rolls 5 as shown in FIG. 4. Each corrugating roll 5 isprovided with a concave portion 55 and a convex portion 56 alternatelyarranged in the rotation direction on the outer peripheral surface ofthe corrugating roll 5. Each concave portion 55 of one of thecorrugating rolls 5 corresponds to each convex portion 56 of the otherof the corrugating rolls 5. Each convex portion 56 of one of thecorrugating rolls 5 corresponds to each concave portion 55 of the otherof the corrugating rolls 5. The pair of corrugating rolls 5 areconfigured so that the respective concave and convex portions 55 and 56are engaged with each other.

Then, by rotating the pair of corrugating rolls 5 in a state in whichthe inner core laminate material 21 is sandwiched between the pair ofcorrugating rolls 5, the inner core laminate material 21 is passedthrough between the pair of corrugating rolls 5 to be formed in acorrugated sheet shape. Furthermore, the corrugated inner core laminatematerial 21 is cut into a predetermined length by a shear knife (shearcutting blade) 51 arranged on the downstream side of the corrugatingrolls 5. Thus, the inner core material 2 is produced.

As described above, the inner core material 2 configured as describedabove is accommodated inside the outer packaging material 1. The thermalfusion layer 23 at the bottom of the concave portion 55 of the innercore material 2 is integrally joined by thermal fusion to the thermalfusion layer 13 of the lower outer packaging laminate material 11 of theouter packaging material 1. While, the thermal fusion layer 23 at thetop of the convex portion 26 of the inner core material 2 is integrallyjoined by thermal fusion to the thermal fusion layer 13 of the upperouter packaging laminate material 11 of the outer packaging material 1.

In this embodiment, the wave direction of the corrugated inner corelaminate material 21 is arranged corresponding to the left and rightdirection of the heat exchanger (left and right direction in FIG. 1A).

In this embodiment, the inner core material 2 is formed in a corrugatedshape to form concave and convex portions 25 and 26, but the inventionis not limited thereto. In the present invention, as shown in FIG. 3B, aplurality of concave portions 25 and a plurality of convex portions 26may be dispersedly formed by embossing in a staggered pattern or thelike so that the concave portion 25 and the convex portion 26 arealternately arranged in the front and rear direction and in the left andright direction in the inner core material 2.

This embossing can be performed using a pair of embossing rolls. Forexample, as the embossing roll, an embossing roll formed so that aconcave portion and a convex portion are alternately arranged in therotation direction and in the axial direction on the outer peripheralsurface may be used. Furthermore, a pair of embossing rolls is arrangedso that the respective concave and convex portions are engaged with eachother in a state in which each concave portion of one of the pair ofembossing rolls corresponds to each convex portion of the other of thepair of embossing rolls and each convex portion of one of the pair ofembossing rolls corresponds to each concave portion of the other of thepair of embossing rolls. Then, by rotating the pair of embossing rollsin a state in which the inner core laminate material 21 is sandwichedbetween the pair of embossing rolls, the inner core laminate material 21is passed through between the pair of embossing rolls to be formed in awave sheet shape. With this, the inner core material 2 as shown in FIG.3B in which concave portions 25 and convex portions 26 are dispersedlyformed in the staggered pattern or the like can be produced.

It should be noted that in the present invention, the shape of theconcave portion 25 and the shape of the convex portion 26 are notparticularly limited. Each of the concave portion 25 and the convexportion 26 may be formed in a circular shape, an elliptical shape, or anoval shape, or may be formed in a polygonal shape, such as, e.g., atriangle, a quadrangle, and a pentagon, or may be formed in an irregularshape. Furthermore, it may be formed in a combined shape of theaforementioned shapes, such as, e.g., a diamond pattern, a silk pattern,a cloth pattern, a satin pattern, a water ball pattern, a comb pattern,and a streak pattern.

It should further be noted that the arrangement pattern of the pluralityof concave and convex portions is not particularly limited, and may bearranged in any manner. It also should be noted that the arrangementdoes not necessarily have to be regular, and a plurality of concave andconvex portions may be randomly arranged.

Further, in this embodiment, the inner core material 2 is formed in acorrugated plate shape by a corrugating process, but the presentinvention is not limited thereto. In the present invention, the innercore material 2 may be formed in a corrugated shape by a pleatingprocess.

In this embodiment, it is preferable to set the depth of the concaveportion 25 or the height of the convex portion 26 of the inner corematerial 2 to 0.1 mm to 50 mm. That is, by adjusting the depth or theheight of the concave and convex portions 25 and 26 so as to fall withinthe aforementioned range, the refrigerant flow path formed inside theouter packaging material 1 can be formed assuredly, and favorable flowcharacteristics can be acquired.

In this embodiment, the depth of the concave portion 25 of the innercore material 2 denotes a depth from the middle position to the deepestportion in the thickness direction (up and down direction) of the innercore material 2, and the height of the convex portion 26 denotes aheight from the middle position to the top portion of the inner corematerial 2 in the thickness direction (up and down direction). Thedimension obtained by adding the depth of the concave portion 25 and theheight of the convex portion 26 corresponds to the thickness dimensionof the inner core material 2.

Next, the production procedure of the heat exchanger of this embodimentwill be described.

As shown in FIG. 5A, in the middle region of one outer packaginglaminate material (the lower outer packaging laminate material) 11except for the outer peripheral edge portion thereof, an inner corematerial 2 which is an inner core laminate material 21 in which concaveand convex portions 25 and 26 are formed by a corrugating process,embossing, etc., is arranged. Furthermore, joint pipes 31 and 41 arearranged at the front end edge portion and the rear end edge portion ofthe outer packaging laminate material 11 of the outer peripheral edgeportion thereof.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 5C and FIG. 5D, the upper outer packaginglaminate material 11 is arranged on the lower outer packaging laminatematerial 11 so as to cover the upper surface of the inner core material2 and the upper outer periphery of each of the joint pipes 31 and 41.Thus, the thermal fusion layers 13 of the upper and lower outerpackaging laminate materials 11 at the outer peripheral edge portionthereof are arranged in a stacked manner.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5E, the outer peripheral edge portions of thestacked two outer packaging laminate materials 11 are heated while beingsandwiched by a pair of upper and lower heat sealing dies 6. With this,the thermal fusion layers 13 of the outer peripheral edge portions ofthe upper and lower outer packaging laminate material 11 are integrallyjoined by thermal fusion (heat sealing). At the same time, the upperside portion outer peripheries and the lower side portion outerperipheries of the joint pipes 31 and 41 are integrally joined bythermal fusion (heat sealing) to the thermal fusion layers 13 of theouter peripheral edge portions of the upper and lower outer packaginglaminate materials 11. As described above, the outer peripheral edgeportions of the upper and lower outer packaging laminate materials 11are sealed in a liquid-tight or air-tight state in a state in which apart of each joint pipe 31, 41 is drawn out. In FIG. 5F, in order tofacilitate understanding of the present invention, hatching by diagonallines is applied to the thermally fused region (the same is applied toFIG. 5H).

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 5E, the intermediate region of the outerpackaging material 1 whose outer peripheral edge portion is thermallyfused is heated while being sandwiched by a pair of upper and lowerheating plates 7. With this, the thermal fusion layer 23 of the bottomsurface of the concave portion 25 of the inner core material 2 and thethermal fusion layer 13 of the lower outer packaging laminate material11 are thermally fused (heat sealed) and integrally joined. At the sametime, the thermal fusion layer 23 of the top surface of the convexportion 26 of the inner core material 2 and the thermal fusion layer 13of the upper outer packaging laminate material 11 are thermally fused(heat sealed) and integrally joined.

After thermally fusing the concave and convex portions 25 and 26 of theinner core material 2 to the outer packaging material 1, as indicated bythe bracketed symbols in FIG. 5G, the outer packaging material 1 iscooled while being sandwiched by a pair of upper and lower coolingplates 8. Thus, the heat exchanger of this embodiment is produced.

Next, a specific example of the heat exchanger produced according tothis embodiment will be described.

First, as an outer packaging laminate material 11, a laminate materialwas prepared, in which a resin film (coating layer 14) made of a PETresin having a thickness of 12 μm was adhered to the upper surface of a100 μm thick aluminum foil (heat transfer layer 12) with a two-partcuring type urethane based adhesive agent and a 40 μm thick LLDPE(linear low density polyethylene) resin film (thermal fusion layer 13)was bonded to the lower surface of the heat transfer layer 12 with atwo-part curing type urethane based adhesive agent.

Furthermore, as the inner core laminate material 21, a laminate materialwas prepared, in which a 40 μm thick LLDPE (linear low densitypolyethylene) resin film (thermal fusion layer 23) was bonded on boththe upper and lower surfaces of a 100 μm thick aluminum foil (heattransfer layer 22) with a tow-part curing type urethane based adhesiveagent.

Furthermore, joint pipes 31 and 41 composed of an integrally moldedarticle of polyethylene resin for the refrigerant inlet 3 and therefrigerant outlet 4 were prepared.

Next, a large number of concave and convex portions 25, 26 were formedon the inner core laminate material 21 using embossing rolls.

Furthermore, the outer packaging laminate material 11 and the inner corelaminate material 21 were cut into a predetermined size. Thereafter, asdescribed in FIG. 5A to FIG. 5H, the inner core laminate material 21 andthe two joint pipes 31 and 41 were sandwiched by two outer packaginglaminate materials 11, and the required portions thereof are thermallyfused. Thus, a heat exchanger according to the aforementioned embodimentwas produced.

Further, a heat exchanger according to the aforementioned embodiment wasproduced in the same manner as described above except that corrugatedconcave and convex portions 25 and 26 were formed on the inner corelaminate material 21 using corrugating rolls.

Thus, as described above, two types of heat exchangers including a heatexchanger in which the inner core material 2 was embossed and a heatexchanger in which the inner core material 2 was subjected to acorrugating process were produced.

The heat exchanger of the embodiment configured as described above isincorporated in an electronic equipment, such as, e.g., a smartphone anda personal computer, to be used as a cooling device for absorbing heatgenerated from electronic components, such as, e.g., a CPU of theelectronic equipment. That is, a refrigerant, such as, e.g., water andan antifreeze liquid, flows into the outer packaging material 1 from thejoint pipe 31 on the refrigerant inlet 3 side, and the refrigerant flowsout of the joint pipe 41 on the refrigerant outlet 4 side through theouter packaging material 1. Thus, heat is exchanged between therefrigerant flowing in the outer packaging material 1 and the electroniccomponents arranged around the outer surface of the outer packagingmaterial 1, so that the heat generated from the electronic components isabsorbed to cool the electronic components.

According to the heat exchanger of the embodiment configured asdescribed above, it is possible to easily produce the heat exchangeronly by appropriately thermally fusing the laminate materials 11 and 21in which the resin thermal fusion layers 13 and 23 are laminated on themetal heat transfer layers 12 and 22. Therefore, compared with aconventional metal heat exchanger which is produced by highly difficultand troublesome bonding, such as, e.g., brazing, cost reduction andproductivity improvement can be achieved.

Furthermore, the laminate materials 11 and 21 as constituent componentsin the heat exchanger of this embodiment are produced by laminating andbonding resin films as the thermal fusion layers 13 and 23 and thecoating layer 14 to metal films as the heat transfer layers 12 and 22.Therefore, it can be produced continuously and efficiently using awell-known laminating method. Unlike the case of using cumbersome andrestrictive metal working, such as, e.g., plastic working and cutting,it is possible to further improve the production efficiency and achievethe cost reduction.

Moreover, in this embodiment, the concave and convex portions 25 and 26are formed on the inner core material 2 using corrugating rolls 5 orembossing rolls. Therefore, a series of steps from the process ofproducing the inner core laminate material 21 itself for the inner corematerial to the process of forming the concave and convex portions 25and 26 can be performed continuously by roll-to-roll, which can moreassuredly achieve the improvement of the production efficiency and thecost reduction.

Further, since the heat exchanger of this embodiment is formed bybonding thin laminated sheets (laminate materials) 11 and 21, sufficientthinning and weight reduction can be assuredly achieved.

Further, according to the heat exchanger of this embodiment, the innercore material 2 is arranged inside the outer packaging material 1 tosecure a refrigerant circulation space (flow passage) inside the outerpackaging material 1. This can secure high strength against any pressureof an internal pressure and an external pressure, and the operationreliability can be improved.

In particular, in this embodiment, the shape and size of the concave andconvex portions 25 and 26 of the inner core material 2 can be easilychanged. Therefore, by changing the shape and size, the pressureresistance can be freely adjusted, and the size (circulation amount) ofthe flow passage cross-section of the refrigerant can be freelyadjusted. Therefore, the heat exchange performance can be easilyimproved by, for example, increasing the refrigerant flow amount.

Further, the heat exchanger of this embodiment is formed by the outerpackaging material 1 and the inner core material 2 which are laminatematerials 11, 21. Therefore, the shape and size of the heat exchangeritself can be easily changed, and as described above, the thickness, thestrength, the heat exchange performance, etc., can also be easilychanged. For these reasons, it can be easily configured to have anappropriate configuration in accordance with the heat exchanger mountingposition, etc., which can increase the degree of freedom in design andalso improve the versatility.

Moreover, in this embodiment, in cases where the thermal fusion layer 13of the outer packaging material 1 and the thermal fusion layer 23 of theinner core material 2 to be thermally fused thereto are made of the sameresin, the outer packaging material 1 and the inner core material 2 canbe integrally joined together more assuredly, which in turn can furtherimprove the strength against the internal pressure and further improvethe operation reliability.

Moreover, in this embodiment, in cases where the thermal fusion layer 13of the outer packaging material 1 and the joint pipes 31 and 41 of therefrigerant inlet 3 and the refrigerant outlet 4 to be attached to theouter packaging material 1 in a penetrating state are made of the samekind of resin, the outer peripheral surfaces of the joint pipes 31 and41 can be more assuredly integrally joined to the inner peripheralsurface of the outer packaging material 1. As a result, the joint pipes31 and 41 can be mounted in a hermetically sealed or liquid tight sealedstate by the outer packaging material 1, and liquid leakage and the likecan be assuredly prevented, resulting in higher operation reliability.

In the above-described embodiment, the description was made byexemplifying the heat exchanger used as a cooler (cooling device) bycirculating a heat transfer medium (refrigerant) for cooling, but thepresent invention is not limited thereto. In the present invention, theheat exchanger can be used as a heater (heating device) or a heatgenerator (heat generating device) by circulating a heating medium (heatmedium) for heating inside thereof.

In the above-described embodiment, the description was made byexemplifying the case in which the outer packaging material 1 was formedby stacking two outer packaging laminate materials 1 one on the otherand heat sealing the outer peripheral edge portion thereof. In thepresent invention, it is also possible to form the outer packagingmaterial 1 by one outer packaging laminate material 11. For example, abag-like outer packaging material may be formed by folding one outerpackaging laminate material 11 in half and heat sealing the other threesides except for the bent side.

Furthermore, in the present invention, the outer packaging material 1may be previously processed to accommodate the inner core material 2 bydeep drawing or the like.

Moreover, in the above-described embodiment, the description was made byexemplifying the case in which the coating layer was provided as anouter packaging material on the outer surface side (the other surfaceside) of the heat transfer layer, but the present invention is notlimited thereto. In the present invention, as the outer packagingmaterial, an outer packaging material having no coating layer on theouter surface side of the heat transfer layer may be used.

Furthermore, for the outer packaging material and the inner corematerial of the above-described embodiment, the description was made byexemplifying the case in which the thermal fusion layer is laminated onthe heat transfer layer, but the present invention is not limitedthereto. In the present invention, another layer (intermediate layer)may be laminated between the heat transfer layer and the thermal fusionlayer.

Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the outer packagingmaterial 1 and the inner core material 2 are each formed of a laminatematerial having a three-layer structure, but the present invention isnot limited thereto. In the present invention, the outer packagingmaterial 1 may be composed of two or four or more layers of laminatematerials, and the inner core material 2 may be composed of four or morelayers of laminate materials.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the description was made byexemplifying the case in which the refrigerant inlet 3 and therefrigerant outlet 4 are formed at the front end portion and the rearend portion, respectively. However, the formation positions of the heatmedium inlet (refrigerant inlet) and the heat medium outlet (refrigerantoutlet) are not limited, and they may be formed at any positions.

The present invention also includes the case in which only concaveportions or only convex portions are formed on the inner core material2. For example, in the inner core material in which only concaveportions are formed, the flat portion is also served as a convexportion. In the inner core material in which only convex portions areformed, the flat portion is also served as a concave portion.

The present application claims priority to Japanese Patent ApplicationNo. 2018-122661 filed on Jun. 28, 2018, the entire disclosure of whichis incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

It should be understood that the terms and expressions used herein areused for explanation and have no intention to be used to construe in alimited manner, do not eliminate any equivalents of features shown andmentioned herein, and allow various modifications falling within theclaimed scope of the present invention.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The heat exchanger of the present invention can be used as a cooler(cooling device) for measures against heat generation around a CPU or abattery of smartphones or personal computers, measures against heatgeneration around displays of a liquid crystal display TV, an organic ELTV, or a plasma TV, and measures against heat generation around a powermodule or a battery of an automobile. In addition to the above, the heatexchanger of the present invention can also be utilized as a heater(heating device) used for floor heating and snow removal.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS

-   1: outer packaging material-   11: outer packaging laminate material-   12: heat transfer layer-   13: thermal fusion layer-   2: inner core material-   21: inner core laminate material-   22: heat transfer layer-   23: thermal fusion layer-   25: concave portion-   26: convex portion-   3: refrigerant inlet-   31: joint pipe-   4: refrigerant outlet-   41: joint pipe-   5: corrugating roll

1. A heat exchanger comprising: a bag-like outer packaging material provided with a heat medium inlet and a heat medium outlet, wherein a heat medium flows into an inner space of the outer packaging material via the heat medium inlet, flows through the inner space, and flows out of the outer packaging material via the heat medium outlet; and an inner core material arranged in the inner space of the outer packaging material, wherein the outer packaging material is constituted by an outer packaging laminate material including a metal heat transfer layer and a resin thermal fusion layer provided on one surface side of the heat transfer layer, and the outer packaging laminate materials are stacked one on the other and the thermal fusion layers of the outer packaging laminate materials are integrally joined to each other along a peripheral edge portion of the outer packaging laminate material, wherein the inner core material is constituted by an inner core laminate material including a metal heat transfer layer and resin thermal fusion layers provided on both surface sides of the heat transfer layer, and includes concave and convex portions, and wherein the thermal fusion layers of a concave portion bottom and a convex portion top of the inner core material and the thermal fusion layers of the outer packaging material are integrally joined.
 2. The heat exchanger as recited in claim 1, wherein the thermal fusion layer of the outer packaging material and the thermal fusion layer of the inner core material are made of the same kind of resin.
 3. The heat exchanger as recited in claim 1, wherein a depth of the concave portion or a height of the convex portion is set to 0.1 mm to 50 mm.
 4. The heat exchanger as recited claim 1, further comprising joint pipes, wherein one of the joint pipes is provided at the heat medium inlet and the other of the joint pipes is provided at the heat medium outlet, and the joint pipes are configured to allow the heat medium to flow into and flow out of the outer packaging material via the joint pipes.
 5. The heat exchanger as recited in claim 4, wherein each of the join pipes is provided with a resin thermal fusion layer on an outer peripheral surface of each of the joint pipes, wherein the outer packaging laminate materials are stacked one on the other via the joint pipes, the thermal fusion layers of the outer packaging laminate materials are integrally joined to the thermal fusion layers of the joint pipes, and the joint pipes are attached to the outer packaging material in a sealed state, and wherein the thermal fusion layer of the outer packaging laminate material and the thermal fusion layer of each of the joint pipes are made of the same kind of resin.
 6. A method of producing the heat exchanger as recited in claim 1, wherein the concave and convex portions of the inner core material are formed by an embossing process or a corrugating process.
 7. The method of producing the heat exchanger as recited in claim 6, wherein the concave and convex portions are formed on the inner core material by passing the inner core laminate material between a pair of embossing rolls or a pair of corrugating rolls while sandwiching the inner core laminate material between the pair of embossing rolls or the pair of corrugating rolls.
 8. The method of producing the heat exchanger as recited in claim 1, wherein the concave and convex portions of the inner core material are formed by a pleating process. 